Dubai leader’s estranged wife appears in London court seeking forced marriage protection order

Princess Haya, the estranged sixth wife of the ruler of Dubai, is seeking a protective order against her husband, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, to prevent her child from being forced into marriage, according to The New York Times.

On Tuesday, Haya, who fled to London with the couple’s 11-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son earlier in the year, asked a British court for a nonmolestation order protecting her and for custody of the two children, according to the Times.

{mosads}Haya also asked the court for a forced marriage protection order, which would allow British authorities to block a person from being taken abroad for the purposes of being forced into a marriage, according to the Times, citing Britain’s Press Association.

Judge Andrew McFarlane barred international news outlets from the proceedings and imposed broad reporting restrictions on the hearing.

However, McFarlane allowed certain information to be disclosed, citing “a public interest,” and denied Sheikh Mohammed’s legal team’s request to suppress a basic overview of the legal battle, according to the Times.

Two of Sheikh Mohammed’s daughters from other marriages, Sheikha Shamsa al-Maktoum and Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed al-Maktoum, have previously attempted to flee Dubai but were recaptured by Emirati forces, according to the Times.

Representatives for both Haya and her husband said in a joint statement that the court proceedings are “concerned with the welfare of the two children of their marriage and do not concern divorce or finances.”